Opinion: Six amazing dinosaur discoveries that changed the world

David Norman (Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences) discusses the fossil discoveries that really made a difference to science. Recently, an auction of a dinosaur skeleton , discovered in Jurassic-aged rocks in the US, was held in West Sussex, England. The skeleton was that of a largely complete, immature, three-metre long carnivorous dinosaur: Allosaurus fragilis - "delicate strange reptile". It was anticipated that the specimen would sell for somewhere in the region of £300,000-£500,000. Interestingly, bidding stopped before the reserve price was reached, so the specimen is still on the open market. The price or value of fossils has a history that is practically as long as the science of palaeontology (the study of fossils) itself. Believe it or not, the tongue-twister "she sells seashells on the seashore" has its origin in the work of one of the earliest and most celebrated fossil collectors, Mary Anning.